Once you’ve created the page, share it with the people you included. But you don’t need to start writing new content. As people click, your traffic increases. The more people who read and recommend your article, the more your content will be promoted to the massive audience on Medium. The more social shares your content gets, the more traffic you’ll get. To make people want to click, write a compelling headline that draws people in. But since they’re promoting your site, as well, you get a steady stream of new traffic from the referring site. Once you write the post, email the influencer. If people are interested in what you have to say, they’ll click through to read more. Instead of a link to your most recent post, you can include a link to share the post.
Do you struggle to bring people to your website?
I know the feeling.
For years, I struggled to build traffic myself. It seemed like no matter what I tried, people didn’t want to read my content.
But then things started changing. As I continued to write and promote, I started to see my traffic increase.
Today, NeilPatel.com is one of the top marketing sites online.
So, what’s the secret to server-crushing traffic?
There are thousands of ways you can boost your traffic, but the best is by trying something new.
Here are 18 unusual ways to increase traffic to your website.
1. Create a resources page
Everyone loves a little flattery.
One of the best opportunities to build more traffic to your site is by creating a page dedicated to showering praise on companies and individuals you admire.
You can do this in a few ways:
- Thank-you page. List the people and brands who have encouraged you on your journey.
- Resource page. Feature the best sites from around the Internet with brief explanations of what makes these pages special.
- Favorite products page. Include images and short reviews of your favorite products. Explain why they stand out.
An example of a great resources page is the one by Pat Flynn. In addition to listing the software and products he uses, he includes affiliate links to them.
In addition to driving traffic, Pat’s page earns affiliate commissions. You might as well kill two birds with one stone.
Once you’ve created the page, share it with the people you included.
Write a simple Tweet that lets each brand or person know you’ve included them. Don’t send out a template Tweet. Customize each one.
Here’s an example:
Hey NAME! I loved your page on TOPIC. Wanted to let you know I included you on my resource page: LINK
People love sharing a post that makes them look good. By writing a good resource post, you can tap into the massive traffic of these influencers.
Influencer marketing is one of the best investments you can make. According to TapInfluence, influencer marketing drives 11x more ROI than other types of digital media.
2. Start posting on Medium
If you’re not growing your blog on Medium yet, you should be.
The site boasts over 60 million readers a month, and most of them have never heard of your site.
But you don’t need to start writing new content. Just republish your old content and expose the articles you’ve already written to new readers.
Some people think Google will penalize this duplication.
That used to be true. If you ran two sites and posted the same content on both, Google would recognize it as duplicate content.
As a result, search engines would push your pages further down the SERPs.
But years ago, Google created a tool that allows you to post duplicate content without consequence.
It’s called a canonical URL, and it basically tells search engines that the content is syndicated. Medium uses a canonical URL by default.
To upload a post, set up a Medium account. Click Sign Up if you’re not already a member.
Connect it with Twitter.
Once you’ve approved the app, click on your avatar, then on Stories.
Select Import a story.
Paste the URL of the story you’d like to publish, then click Import.
On the page that pops up, click See your story.
Medium will take a few minutes to import your post. Once it does, double-check that everything looks correct.
If it looks good, click the Publish menu button. Add tags, select the image, and click the Publish button.
It’s as easy as that!
For best results with Medium, make sure to include a lot of compelling internal links to your own content. As people click, your traffic increases.
The more people who read and recommend your article, the more your content will be promoted to the massive audience on Medium.
3. Require shares for bonus content
If you have a resource you could add to your content, you can easily leverage it to boost traffic to your site.
To make it work, advertise special content or a download. Make it clear to your fans that the only way to get access is if they share it with their friends.
Be sure to make the page that advertises the content very compelling. The more powerful you make your promotional copy, the more likely someone will share it with his or her friends.
Once someone shares the promotion page on a social network, give them access to the download.
The beauty of this system is that every time someone gets your content, they share it with the hundreds or thousands of people in their social circles.
The more social shares your content gets, the more traffic you’ll get.
And if your content is truly top-notch, you may even get people to share it again after the download.
4. Use QR codes in the offline world
If you haven’t started using QR codes in your business yet, it’s time to give it a try!
To get started, find a page on your site you’d like visitors to read. Copy the URL and paste it in a QR Code Generator.
Click Create QR code.
The code by itself isn’t too interesting. To make people want to click, write a compelling headline that draws people in.
Here are a few suggestions for headline topics that work well:
- Use reverse psychology. Warn people that the content is distracting, life-changing, or impossible to forget.
- Focus on the benefit. Explain that the information will provide an incredible reward, but don’t give specifics on the process. They’ll have to read the piece to find out!
- Be mysterious. Write a headline so intriguing and vague that people can’t help but click. Imply there’s something secretive, but you can’t give more details.
Use the QR code on any offline medium. You can put it on T-shirts, posters, flyers, or even billboards and advertisements.
When smartphone users see the distinctive square codes, they feel instantly curious. Each time someone scans the code, they’ll be taken to your website.
If you link them to a landing page or an e-commerce site, you can even generate leads and sales from the traffic!
5. Submit to StumbleUpon
The social bookmarking site StumbleUpon has been around for years, but it’s still going strong.
StumbleUpon allows users to find new websites and pages by clicking the Stumble button in the app.
Unlike many sites that cause content to go viral, StumbleUpon articles usually don’t spike.
They remain popular on the site for years, bringing in a steady stream of traffic. To get started, sign up for a StumbleUpon account. Submit your best articles.
Content that works well is usually short, remarkable, and visual. List articles and funny or emotional stories often work well, too.
It might take a few weeks to gain traction with StumbleUpon. But if you’re patient, the results will pay off in traffic.
StumbleUpon’s algorithm rewards articles that are popular. Once other users start to upvote your content, your articles will be shown more frequently and get more upvotes.
It’s a continuous cycle that leads to more traffic for your website.
6. Swap ads with another site
If you have already have some viewers, you can leverage that momentum with another site that wants to increase its traffic.
To get started, find a site in your similar niche. It’s important that the site is related, but not a competitor.
The best type of site to reach out to is one in a complementary industry. Complementary products and services typically do very well.
If you teach people how to grow houseplants, for example, you could reach out to someone who sells custom-made planters.
To reach out, you’ll need to find the business owner’s email. Do a site-specific search in Google using “contact site:” and the URL.
Review the pages to find one with a contact form or email address. Pitch the basic idea to the site owner.
Each of you will have a small ad for the other site in your sidebar. Decide on a period of time.
(I recommend three months. You can always go for longer if you want to.)
If they agree, prepare a compelling picture with some overlaid text. Place their image in the sidebar, and start sending traffic their way.
Since people who click on the ad for the other site are existing readers, you don’t lose traffic.
But since they’re promoting your site, as well, you get a steady stream of new traffic from the referring site.
7. Have experts contribute to a roundup post
If you want to get dozens of influencers excited about your website, feature them in a roundup post.
To do this, make a list of 20+ names in your industry you’d like to contact.
Send them a simple email explaining that you’re doing a roundup post, and ask them to contribute if they want to.
Once you receive the contributions, include them together in one post. For best results, have a short bio and headshot of each contributor, along with a link to their website.
If you can’t get responses from influencers, you can pull quotes from their Twitter feeds or articles they’ve written.
That’s how Guest Crew published this roundup, including a quote from me.
When the article goes live, email all the contributors who gave you a quote for the post.
You should also share the post on your social networks. Make sure to tag the influencers in the post.
You can tag an unlimited number of people on Google+. Facebook limits you to 50, Instagram limits you to 30, and Twitter is limited by character count.
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